Outboard Marine Drive

ABSTRACT

An outboard marine drive with an engine is described. The marine drive may include a drive housing with an upper drive housing and lower drive housing. The drive housing may be configured to be attached to a transom of a marine craft. An upper drive assembly may be located in the upper drive housing. A lower gear drive assembly may be located in the lower drive housing. A cone clutch may be located in the lower drive housing to engage the upper drive assembly with the lower gear drive assembly.

BACKGROUND

Outboard motors are typically built with a thin aluminum frame and other light weight alloys. Outboard motors are designed to run in open water with little or no expected impact to the outdrive assembly. This design restricts the boat operator from running the motor and boat along shorelines and in many waterways where impacts to the lower drive unit are likely and can damage the propeller, drive, and/or outdrive housing. Such impacts can come from rocks, logs, a waterway bottoms, or other similar obstacles. Sportsmen and others who desire to hunt, fish and travel in areas where obstacles reside in the water may avoid these areas as much as possible. Even then, what lies below the water's surface is usually a mystery, especially in muddy or murky waters.

The possibility of impact and damage to the lower end of an outboard motor is always present. As such, boaters must be constantly alert for sub-surface obstacles. When an impact to an outboard motor occurs, the boater is likely to face large motor repair bills. The inconvenience, safety hazard, threat of being stranded, and the financial losses of motor damage can be daunting for outboard motor owners.

SUMMARY

The technology provides an outboard marine drive with an engine. The outboard marine drive may include a drive housing with an upper drive housing and lower drive housing. The drive housing may be configured to be attached to a transom of a marine craft. An upper drive assembly may be located in the upper drive housing. A lower gear drive assembly may be located in the lower drive housing. A cone clutch may be located in the lower drive housing to engage the upper drive assembly with the lower gear drive assembly. A propeller shaft may be coupled to the lower gear drive assembly.

Additional features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the detailed description which follows, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which together illustrate, by way of example, features of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an outboard marine drive in accordance with an example of the present technology; and

FIG. 2A is a view of the example outboard marine drive of FIG. 1 with a portion of the drive housing removed.

FIG. 2B is another view of the example outboard marine drive of FIG. 1 with a portion of the drive housing removed.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exploded view of an example outboard marine drive.

FIG. 4A is a side view of an outboard motor boat with a motor mounted thereto using a motor mount in accordance with an embodiment of the present technology;

FIG. 4B is a perspective view of a portion of the outboard motor boat of FIG. 4A.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made to the exemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawings, and specific language will be used herein to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended. Alterations and further modifications of the inventive features illustrated herein, and additional applications of the principles of the inventions as illustrated herein, which would occur to one skilled in the relevant art and having possession of this disclosure, are to be considered within the scope of the invention.

A transom mounted outboard motor technology is described here. More specifically, a heavy duty marine outboard is described with a lower shifting drive assembly.

FIG. 1 illustrates an outboard motor, indicated generally at 100, in accordance with the present technology. The outboard may include a drive housing with an upper drive housing 110 and lower drive housing 120, and the drive housing may be configured to be attached to a transom of a marine craft. A steering handle 130 may also be attached to the drive housing to steer the outboard marine motor. A shifter 132 may also be provided to actuate the shifting of the gears including controlling forward, neutral, or reverse. The speed of the outboard marine motor may be controlled by a throttle control 140 on the end of the handle. The shifter may be an electric or a magnetic shifter and may include a servo mechanism.

Having an outboard drive unit designed and built from thicker and stronger alloys that can sustain motor operations when the motor impacts objects at medium speeds can be an advantage to a boater. In addition to the use of strong alloys, the outboard motor can have certain structures that can allow the outboard motor to be used in taxing environments.

FIG. 2A illustrates a portion of an outboard marine drive with an engine. Specifically, FIG. 2A illustrates the drive train and propeller portions 200 of the outboard motor with a portion of the external drive housing(s) removed. As illustrated above, the outboard marine drive can have a drive housing with multiple housing pieces. The drive housing(s) can be configured to be attached to a transom of a marine craft using a clamping device (not shown), by bolts and/or other similar mechanisms.

An upper drive assembly 210 may be located in the upper drive housing. A lower gear drive assembly 220 may be located in the lower drive housing. A cone clutch 212 may be configured to engage the upper drive assembly with the lower gear drive assembly 220 and the cone clutch 212 may be located accordingly between the lower gear drive assembly 220 and the upper drive assembly. In this way, the cone clutch 212 may be located in or near the lower drive housing 120. The upper drive assembly 210 may receive power from the engine and transmit power to the lower gear drive assembly 220 by way of the cone clutch 212. The cone clutch 212 may be part of a transmission which may have a single speed or multiple speeds and the ability to change gear ratios. For example, there can be multiple forward gears and multiple reverse gears in the transmission associated with the cone clutch 212. A gear ratio selection may be provided in the transmission for forward or reverse motion of the marine craft. In an example, the transmission may have a cone clutch that provides forward, neutral and reverse motion of the marine craft. While the transmission gearing has been provided in the lower housing in past outboard designs, providing the cone clutch allows the transmission and cone clutch to be consolidated in the same space.

Locating the transmission and the cone clutch 212 in or near the lower drive housing 120 has the advantage that a cone clutch may provide a more compact and stronger clutch over other types of clutches and/or transmissions and may still adequately meet gearing requirements. The cone clutch may be stronger and may be capable of handling more horsepower and drive impacts as compared to some other types of clutches and/or transmissions. For example, the outboard motor utilizing a cone clutch as heretofore described may produce between 300 and 500 horsepower. Moreover, a cone clutch may provide smoother shifting, may have a wider range of shifting options at lower or higher rotations per minute (RPMs) while consuming less space and therefore contributing less drag on the marine craft.

A cone clutch may provide sufficient positive engagement on an outboard motor while eliminating the need for dog clutches. Dog clutches, for instance, may not be able to withstand some types of high or sudden impacts as adequately as a cone clutch.

A lower gear drive assembly 220 may be located in the lower drive housing and be coupled to the upper drive assembly via the transmission and the cone clutch 212. A propeller shaft 216 and propeller 218 may also be coupled to the lower gear drive assembly. The propeller shaft can be an extended length shaft and can be more than 12 inches in length. The propeller may be located above the bottom of the marine craft.

A rudder fin 150 (FIG. 1) and cavitation plate (not shown) may also be located on the lower drive housing of the outboard marine motor. A portion of the lower drive housing may extend below the bottom of the marine craft. FIG. 2B illustrates another portion of an outboard marine drive with an engine. Specifically, FIG. 2B adds a transmission 214 to provide a multiplicity of gears in, for example, a gear box. A gear ratio selection may be provided with the transmission 214 to provide for multiple forward or reverse gears for the marine craft. The cone clutch 212 may also provide forward, neutral, and reverse motion to the marine craft.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exploded view of an example outboard marine drive. The transmission and the cone clutch 212 may be located between the connection of the lower gear drive assembly 220 and the upper drive assembly 210 and may be controlled by a shifter as described above. Reference will now be made to FIGS. 4A-4B. FIG. 4A is a side view of an outboard motor boat 410 with a motor 405 mounted thereto using a motor mount. The motor includes a handle 415 described above, which can be used for steering and adjusting a trim or vertical positioning of the motor in the water. FIG. 4B is a perspective view of a portion of the outboard motor boat of FIG. 4A. It is to be understood that the above-referenced arrangements are only illustrative of the application for the principles of the present invention. Numerous modifications and alternative arrangements can be devised without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. While the present invention has been shown in the drawings and fully described above with particularity and detail in connection with what is presently deemed to be the most practical and preferred embodiment(s) of the invention, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that numerous modifications can be made without departing from the principles and concepts of the invention as set forth herein. 

1. An outboard marine drive with an engine, comprising: a drive housing having an upper drive housing and lower drive housing, the drive housing configured to be attached to a transom of a marine craft; an upper drive assembly located in the upper drive housing; a lower gear drive assembly located in the lower drive housing; and a cone clutch located in the lower drive housing to engage the upper drive assembly with the lower gear drive assembly.
 2. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, further comprising a propeller shaft coupled to the lower gear drive assembly.
 3. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, further comprising a propeller attached to the propeller shaft.
 4. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, further comprising a transmission with multiple gear ratios.
 5. The outboard marine motor as in claim 4, wherein the transmission receives power from the engine through the upper drive assembly and transmits power to the lower gear drive assembly through the cone clutch.
 6. The outboard marine motor as in claim 4, wherein the transmission includes a gear ratio selection for forward or reverse motion of the marine craft.
 7. The outboard marine motor as in claim 4, further comprising multiple forward gears in the transmission.
 8. The outboard marine motor as in claim 4, further comprising multiple reverse gears in the transmission.
 9. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, wherein the cone clutch provides forward, neutral and reverse motion of the marine craft.
 10. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, further comprising a steering handle attached to the drive housing to steer the outboard marine motor.
 11. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, further comprising a throttle control to control the speed of the outboard marine motor.
 12. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, further comprising a rudder fin on the lower drive housing of the outboard marine motor.
 13. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, further comprising a cavitation plate fin on the lower drive housing of the outboard marine motor.
 14. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, wherein the lower drive housing partially extends below the bottom of the marine craft.
 15. The outboard marine motor as in claim 1, further comprising a shifter to control forward, neutral, or reverse.
 16. The outboard marine motor as in claim 15, wherein the shifter is an electric or magnetic shifter with a servomechanism. 